Here at ARK, we have been quite busy during the last few months. Recently, we have launched and begun funding applications, plugins and proofs-of-concept through our 1 million ARK-backed ARK Grants program. At the corporate level, we introduced Protokol , which will drive the adoption of ARK technology by becoming a robust enterprise services provider. All of these things are just the tip of the iceberg. Today we want to introduce you to MarketSquare. Make sure to stay tuned to this series as we reveal more about MarketSquare in the coming weeks!
MarketSquare is the new homepage for the decentralized web.
When creating MarketSquare, we strived to make it easy for anyone to discover blockchain projects and applications in a streamlined way. Very soon we will be going much deeper into all of the features MarketSquare has to offer. For now, we’re going to do a quick overview of why anyone from blockchain enthusiasts, to developers, to a project founder can find value in using MarketSquare.
The MarketSquare Beta sign-up is live! Sign up here: MarketSquare Beta
Discoverability
One of the key experiences in MarketSquare is the ability to easily discover businesses, applications and different networks in the blockchain industry. The number of new applications and projects being introduced on a daily basis in the blockchain space are vast. From a user perspective, it can be difficult to make sense of what is useful. For a new user, the process of reviewing and researching different projects can be incredibly daunting. This goes for developers and project founders as well, sometimes it may feel like you’re yelling into an echo chamber.
On MarketSquare, we make it easy to discover businesses, decentralized networks and applications. By searching through different categories using our robust search function and following your favorite projects, it has never been easier to learn about, interact with and follow projects within the blockchain industry.
With MarketSquare, we take a project-based approach to discoverability. For our purposes, the project is something that is owned by an individual or a team of individuals. A project can be anything from a business to an application . Once a project is registered it can be update and customized at anytime to fit your needs.
Currently, MarketSquare has gone through two rounds of internal testing and a closed alpha test. As it stands, MarketSquare is fully functional. We will spend the next few months polishing the final product and making small changes based on feedback we have collected so far during our initial rounds of testing.
Forging Relationships
One of the principal goals of MarketSquare is to empower users with the tools necessary to forge new relationships in the blockchain space. One of the main social features that will be available once MarketSquare rolls out is the ability to add team members to your projects.
So whether you are running a website with a friend, or managing a team of 30+ people, you will benefit from having a presence on MarketSquare.
If you take a look at individual profile pages, you can see that we are rolling out MarketSquare with all the necessary features to make your profile stand out. This includes the ability to add a profile photo, to fill out a description, add your social links, display the projects you are involved with and much more.
In addition to the aesthetic elements that users can add to their individual profiles and project, we wanted to incorporate another layer of transparency by adding a review and rating system to projects. Projects can be reviewed by users and rated based on a 5-star system. Project owners can also respond to reviews adding another level of open communication.
With MarketSquare the possibilities to create and forge new relationships are endless. You might be a project manager who finds your next developer on MarketSquare. You might be a business that gets introduced as a featured project, thereby introducing your project to a new and growing community of blockchain enthusiasts. You might be a UX designer who claimed your freelance business on MarketSquare and are looking to introduce your work to prospective clients. Like we said — endless possibilities.
What’s Next for MarketSquare?
In the coming weeks, we want to take you on a deep dive into everything MarketSquare has to offer and show you why we are so excited. At a later date, we will also be announcing an open public beta test so make sure to follow our social channels so that you can jump in when MarketSquare opens its doors.
After MarketSquare is released, we plan to provide major updates to the platform in phases. During our social update phase, we will be implementing a messaging feature, the ability to subscribe to proje, user badges and an entire suite of new features focused squarely on communication and the social aspects of the community. You can also expect to see a major update for developers that will bring increased profile features and add a comprehensive developer bounty system. As always, each phase may have additional features and improvements added to MarketSquare based on user feedback.
Have questions about MarketSquare? We will answer all questions on a future podcast. Be sure to submit your questions here: https://arkio.typeform.com/to/WQGUI6VB
While there are hundreds of ways you can use MarketSquare, one thing is for sure, we are working tirelessly to make it your go-to destination for exploring the world of blockchain technology.
